Chevrolet Camaro Coupe - The Bad Apple

This car has been called “outrageous.” Built by Jeff Richards, of Super Camaros in Woodland, Washington, it is the product of two years’ work. Powered by a professionally-built 1969 396 engine, it has Edelbrock aluminum heads, EnduraShine dual quad carburetors, a competition cam, 7/16-inch pushrods, roller rockers, and a Billet Specialties Tru Trac serpentine setup. Hooker headers feed Flowmaster American Thunder mufflers and exhaust pipes with stainless tips. Dual electric fans cool the aluminum radiator.

The transmission is a fully-polished Muncie four-speed, with an 11-inch Zoom clutch, Hurst linkage, and an aluminum drive shaft. It has a 10-bolt, heavy-duty GM rear axle with 3.90 gears, Positraction, and a polished, finned aluminum cover.

The front suspension is mounted to a Heidts Pro-G subframe, with power rack-and-pinion steering and stainless tubular A-arms. A Heidts Pro-G four-link setup is used at the rear, with a drive shaft loop, billet coil-over shocks, and a rear sway bar. Brakes are Wilwood drilled and slotted six-piston discs with 12-inch rotors, stainless steel lines, and a CPP master cylinder. The wheels are from Hot Rods by Boyd, 18 inches in front and 22 at the rear.

It has been fitted with a stainless steel fuel tank, a JLine fuel delivery system with polished aluminum lines, Super Nickel fittings, and a Mallory regulator.

The body is a standard 1971 Camaro Sport Coupe, painted in Kandy Apple Kustom by House of Kolors. It was all wet sanded and buffed, with 300 hours of work before the paint was applied. Fesler aluminum hood hinges and hood latch were used in the project, as well as an American Auto wiring harness with a hidden battery connected to remote terminals. The interior is done in black vinyl, with a matching dash pad and floor carpet, tilt column, a leather steering wheel, and Lokar billet pedals and accessories. The instrument panel has carbon fiber Auto Meter gauges with white-on-black faces.

And yet, for all the outrage, it looks simply elegant, with modest brightwork showing off the Camaro’s excellent lines.

It received a Goodguys Cool Camaro award and was selected as the International Show Car Association Best Custom at the 2010 Portland Roadster Show in Oregon. It was also featured in Goodguys Gazette in December 2010. It is accompanied in the sale by a photo album of the rebuild and a binder of records and documents concerning the components used during the project. Whether you think it outrageous or over-the-top, you’ll have to agree it is pretty overwhelming.